This invention relates to a marine steering device and more particularly to an improved apparatus for controlling the steering of a watercraft or the like.
In many marine applications, the watercraft is steered by an operator at a remote location. In order to effect this steering, it has been known to affix a steering arm to the steering device of the watercraft (e.g., a rudder or an outboard drive). The steering arm, in turn, has been connected to the watercraft steering system. The watercraft steering system has often comprised flexible, push-pull cables which extend from an operator controlled steering mechanism (e.g., a steering wheel) to a steering rod which interconnects the cable to the steering arm of the watercraft steering device.
With a purely manual steering system, the driver creates the forces needed to effect turning of the watercraft steering device. Oftentimes manual steering can require a great deal of physical effort on the part of the operator, which may result in operator fatigue. Thus, hydraulic power-assist steering arrangements have been developed for many watercraft today to make steering easier for the driver. This is especially true with watercraft employing large drives or rudder arrangements. The power-assist steering system is designed to reduce the effort needed to turn the steering device. It reduces driver fatigue and increases safety during driving.
In one form of a power-assisted steering device, a hydraulic cylinder piston assembly is employed in combination with a push-pull cable system for aiding an operator in the movement of the watercraft steering device. Normally, steering operations with such a hydraulic device are aided by a hydraulic motor piston assembly that is mounted at or near the transom of the watercraft and which has a piston rod which extends from the cylinder. An outer end of the piston rod is operatively connected to the watercraft steering device for steering it. Pressurized hydraulic fluid is selectively supplied to a specific chamber of the cylinder in response to operator initiated commands, via the push-pull cable system, in order to aid in the movement of the piston contained therein and, thus, to consequently aid in the movement of the outwardly projecting piston rod attached thereto. Accordingly, assistance is rendered to an operator in carrying out steering maneuvers.
While affording the desired aid to an operator in the steering operations of a watercraft, such an arrangement nevertheless presents certain problems. Particularly, since a significant amount of space is required to house and to allow movement for the full stroke of both the steering cable system as well as the piston rod of the hydraulic assist arrangement, the overall combination tends to be quite bulky in size. Thus, there is a present need for a hydraulically assisted watercraft steering arrangement which is effective in operation, yet compact in size.
Therefore, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved watercraft steering arrangement.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a hydraulically assisted steering arrangement which is compact in size and usable in a wide variety of watercraft with a wide variety of drive arrangements.